Name: The Peculiar Fate of Holly Banks
ISBN: 9781542007993

Julie Valerie

Following Holly's move east with her husband and five-year-old daughter from Colorado to the fancy Village of Primm, family dog Struggle begins digging up clues to a long-standing town mystery involving a stolen astrolabe and the true borders of the town.

A Novel

The Peculiar Fate of Holly Banks

Catalina Petre

Thank You to NetGalley and the Publisher for giving me an eArc in exchange of a honest opinion.
While the blurb and the cover attracted me to this book straight away I cannot say I loved the book. 
This book presents the story of Holly Banks, new resident of the very upscale village of Primm, full of fashionable and rich mums and Holly, who does not seem to fit and is full of anxiety about her perceived lack of luck. 
I have to admit I have not read the first book and I was lost at times. I felt like characters just sprung in the story and there was also a back story that didn’t make sense, but I imagine having read the first book might have helped. There seems to be a back story between the formidable Mary Margaret and the main character, between Penelope and the other characters. Not having previous understanding did hinder the story progression for me personally. I had to keep going back and re-read pages to make sure the story linked and connected therefore it felt frustrating and disjointed. 
I also felt there was too much recap at times about the events in the books. I also didn’t like Holly too much to start with. She felt like an insecure teenager that craves what others have (career, house, time, food for children, chandelier etc), complains that no one understands her, and throws tantrums when things don’t go her way. She grew on me a little by the end of the book. 
I would probably enjoy the book more had I read the first one.

The Peculiar Fate of Holly Banks A Novel

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